How To Fall In Love With Taking Care Of Yourself — Mind, Body & Spirit

Where did the last year go? It was gone in the blink of an eye. You did a great job of taking care of everyone else. You made sure the kids' lunches were made and got them to school. You rocked your last presentation at the office. And, you did all of this on little to no sleep.

Now, these are all great things. But, what happened to putting yourself first, to taking care of yourself? You did all of this and now you are feeling burned out. You don’t understand why it is such a big deal. You can barely take a compliment, without wondering why you are feeling so down all the time.

Your brain is always going. You are always at least two or three steps ahead. You feel like you will never catch up. When did life become all work and no fun?

Everybody talks about setting goals for The New Year. They are usually about work and family, and they don’t involve having fun. For the New Year, I want you to set goals about having fun, it's the only way to fall in love with self-care!

Here are 6 tips on how to take care of yourself and have fun this year:

1. Set aside time for fun every day.

Even if you don’t know what it will be, just set aside time for it. Write down "fun" on the calendar, even when you think you can’t possibly fit it in. What are some fun things you wanted to do in 2017, that you never got around to? Start with those today.

2. Practice being grateful.

When you wake up in the morning, I want you to think of 10 things you are grateful for. Instead of thinking about your list of things to do, start the day by giving your mind a break. You don’t have to work on your list first thing in the morning.

3. Plan to travel.

You can go on a day trip or go away for the weekend. Start planning your summer vacation now. You can visit a place you’ve been before or try a new adventure.

Start talking about travel with your friends and family. Ask them what their travel plans are. You can also talk about your travel plans with them. Talk about places you’d like to visit. Invite them to go with you.

4. Create a positive mindset.

Take a good look at your thought process. How positive is it? Do you tend to focus on the negative or go over all the regrets you have about the past? Are you constantly worried about the future? Do you spend a lot of time predicting that things won’t work out?

If you said "yes" to any of these questions, then it’s time to change your mindset. Start by enjoying the present moment. Take a look at your surroundings and start to slow down. Don’t believe the lies that your mind tells you. Start by picking one positive affirmation to focus on today. One of my favorites is, "I am enough."

5. Go easy on yourself.

I find most people tend to be the hardest on themselves. You are constantly beating yourself up. Comparing yourself to others is one of the worst things you can do. You will never feel good enough.

The next time you make a mistake, don’t beat yourself up. Learn what you can and move forward. Everybody makes mistakes, it’s called being a human being.

Take time for yourself every day. Even if it’s 10 minutes, it will make a big difference. Stop spending time with negative people. They will only drain your energy.

When you start to take care of yourself, you will begin to see your attitude and mood change. You will start to feel better about yourself. It will be much easier to say no and set healthy boundaries for yourself.

Lianne Avila is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist, located in San Mateo, CA. She can help teach you the skills you need to take care of yourself, and not feel guilty about it. For more information, please visit Lessons for Love.

This article was originally published at Lessons for Love. Reprinted with permission from the author.